Indian-Origin Taxi Driver Convicted Of Rape Loses US Citizenship After Conviction

An Indian-origin man who became a US citizen has lost his citizenship after a federal court ruled that he concealed a rape and kidnapping while applying for naturalisation.

Gurmeet Singh, 55, a former taxi driver, was convicted in New York for abducting and raping a female passenger at knifepoint in 2011. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison after being convicted in 2014, according to the US Department of Justice.

The Justice Department said Singh hid the crime during the citizenship application process and was naturalised in October 2011, just months after the attack. US Attorney General Todd Blanche confirmed that Singh is no longer a US citizen following the federal court ruling.

“Gurmeet Singh, a convicted rapist from India, is no longer a US citizen,” Blanche said, accusing him of concealing the rape and kidnapping during his naturalisation process. He added that the government would continue pursuing cases involving citizenship allegedly obtained through fraud.

HOW THE CASE UNFOLDED

Singh arrived in the US from India in February 1992 on a temporary visitor visa. Although he was initially permitted to stay for up to six months, he remained in the country without authorisation for years.

He eventually obtained permanent resident status in June 2000 through a family-based immigrant visa petition.

In May 2011, Singh was working as a taxi driver when he picked up a female passenger travelling home. According to the Justice Department, the woman fell asleep during the journey.

When she woke up, she allegedly found Singh on top of her with a knife against her throat. Prosecutors said he restrained and blindfolded her before sexually assaulting her.

The woman later escaped from the taxi and ran to a person on the street for help.

CITIZENSHIP FOLLOWED MONTHS LATER

The attack occurred only weeks before Singh filed his application for US citizenship.

The Justice Department said he failed to disclose the crime during the naturalisation proceedings and became a US citizen in October 2011.

He was subsequently convicted in New York of first-degree rape and second-degree kidnapping as a sexually motivated felony. He was sentenced to 20 years behind bars.

COURT ORDERS DENATURALISATION

On August 26, the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York entered a judgment revoking Singh’s naturalisation.

Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division said Singh had obtained citizenship by concealing serious criminal conduct.

US Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr said the judgment requires Singh to surrender the citizenship he obtained improperly and sends a warning to individuals who attempt to secure US citizenship through deception.

The Justice Department said it will continue pursuing denaturalisation proceedings in cases where citizenship was allegedly obtained unlawfully and the evidence supports action under US law.